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Will you buy your first house or flat by the time you are 25?

19th January 2018

A recent report published by Halifax has found that 27 per cent of people aged between 18 and 21 believe they will own their first home by the age of 25.

The findings also concluded that home ownership is high on the priority list for young people, with some 59 per cent of participants believing home ownership is very important.

However, whilst optimism amongst the youth is high, the actual statistics for home ownership differ greatly. According to research from the English Housing Survey, the average age for first-time buyers is on the rise and there are fewer young people on the property ladder now than a decade ago.

However late last year, the government announced a new incentive to attract more first-time buyers to the market, with the immediate scrapping of stamp duty land tax for first-time buyers on all properties worth up to £300,000 in the 2017 Autumn Budget.

Julie Tomasik, director of residential property at Ansons Solicitors in Cannock and Lichfield, explains that although this recent changes in legislation may release reduce some costs for first-time buyers, caution must be exercised when taking the plunge, and having the right legal expert by your side can make all the difference.

“With fewer properties within their reach, first-time buyers need to be prepared with their paperwork, deposit and mortgage offer in hand to stand the best chance of snapping up prime properties. Having an experienced, savvy conveyancing lawyer by your side will also help make sure you are getting a good deal and that the purchase process goes as smoothly as possible,” says Julie.

There are still lots of other incentives available to help first-time buyers save for a deposit and even to fund part of the purchase price of their new home, such as Help to Buy and shared ownership schemes, as well as the changes to stamp duty land tax.

The contents of this article are for the purposes of general awareness only. They do not purport to constitute legal or professional advice. The law may have changed since this article was published. Readers should not act on the basis of the information included and should take appropriate professional advice upon their own particular circumstances.